Week 4

Psalm: Psalm 9:9-20

Old Testament: 1 Samuel 17-49
Gospel: Mark 4:35-41
Epistle: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13

If you can believe it, we are entering into the last week of June! And summer has definitely arrived in Kansas City.  Our church is doing VBS next week and Kelcey is running the games with me as her handsome assistant.  Our readings this week cover a wide range of topics.  To begin with, 1 Samuel 17 is the story of David and Goliath.  If your remember, two weeks ago was the story of the anointing of King Saul and last week was the story of Samuel anointing David as the next king of Israel.  The story of Goliath is exhibit A for why Saul is rejected as King.  He is willing to throw a young boy, who Samuel twice says, “he was but a youth, and ruddy, with a handsome appearance,” into a battle against the Philistine champion Goliath.  

The story is so full of irony and humor.  David shows up and is willing to fight, so Saul tries to put him in his armor.  One can imagine that Saul was probably a good size man; he was a king and a warrior, so how on earth could a young boy fit inside his armor or even handle his sword? Ultimately, the way Goliath is killed is even ironic.  He is killed by a pebble. A non-descript, run-of-the mill-rock.  For those Lord of the Rings fans you might remember Sting, Glamdring, or Aragorn’s sword Anduril.  Swords had names and were attached to myths.  I don’t think it is a stretch to assume a similar idea in the Bronze age in Israel.  So Goliath, with his bronze, state-of-the-art sword is killed by a shepherd and a rock…oh and then is decapitated with that sword.  Despite the irony and humor, the message is clear: David trusts the Lord whereas Saul does not.  David, in effect, becomes the leader if not yet in name or title.  God uses and calls the weak to shame the strong. (1 Cor. 1:27)

Week 3

Psalm: Psalm 20
Old Testament: 1 Samuel 15:34-16:13
Gospel: Mark 4:26-34
Epistle: 2 Corinthians 5:6-17

Hello everyone.  Hopefully you all had a good Sunday. Today was Father’s Day if you were unaware.  I am always aware that days like this are filled with celebration as well as pain.  A friend my age lost his dad just 3 months ago.  Yet, our hope is in Christ, in the future and today.  In the midst of pain, hurt, and even death, our hope is in Christ.

Our reading from 1 Samuel is the anointing of David by Samuel.  God directs Samuel to the house Jesse where God has chosen the new King of Israel. If we remember last week, Saul was appointed by God as king even though God knew that it was a bad idea to have a king.  Saul failed to follow the Lord and thus lost his divine right to lead.  When Samuel is introduced to Jesse’s family, none of his sons are the Lord’s anointed.  Samuel asks if this is all the sons and Jesse replies that David is in the field tending the sheep.  David, the youngest son of Jesse, a shepherd, is to be the next king of Israel.  He seems to be the least likely of any candidate…he wasn’t even invited to the dinner!  Yet, the writer makes it clear why David was so successful as a king.  He says, “and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward.”  Samuel actually gives the motivation for why Saul was rejected and David was chosen.

 Samuel said to Saul, “You have acted foolishly; you have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you, for now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not endure. The Lord has sought out for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has appointed him as ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.” (1 Sam 13:13-14)

Ordinary Time week 2

Psalm: Psalm 130
Old Testament : 1 Samuel 8:4-11, 12-15, 16-20,
  11:14-15 or Genesis 3:8-15
Gospel : Mark 3:20-35
Epistle : 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1

Well, I am late again on my blog.  Vacation was  good, but it has also made it almost impossible to write or access the internet consistently.  On Sunday I was able to celebrate with our old church, SouthEast in San Diego, for their 50^th anniversary.  The service was four hours of praise and thanksgiving for what God has done and is continuing to do in that neighborhood. 

It is ironic perhaps that our readings this week deal with sin and disobedience.  Psalm 130 is a cry from the writer to be heard by the Lord.  The writer recognizes that without the Lord he can do nothing.  He waits for Lord, like the watchmen waits for the morning.  This analogy is mostly lost on us, but tonight try standing and waiting outside your front door all night until the morning comes.  It’s a long, cold, and boring night! I think it will only take one night for the experience to make an impact.

Trinity Sunday (wk. 1)

Psalm: Psalm 29
Old Testament: Isaiah 6:1-8
Gospel: John 3:1-17
Epistle: Romans 8:12-17

We are in San Diego for two weeks and I was unable to write my post on Sunday, but I didn’t want to let the week pass without a comment.  Next Sunday we will also be in San Diego, but hopefully I will be able to write a reflection on time.  Last Sunday was the beginning of “Ordinary Time,” which simple means counted time. From now until Advent, the weeks will be counted from Pentecost.

The first Sunday after Pentecost is also Trinity Sunday.  The earliest heresies, and many that still hold sway in parts of the Church and in other movements, dealt with the issues of the Trinity.  By denying that Christ was fully divine, it failed to account for Jesus Christ being a part of the divine eternal Trinity.  By denying that Jesus was fully human, it failed to account for the salvation of creation wrought by the divine Trinity.  It is important that as a church we confess our belief in the Triune God.  As I mentioned on Pentecost Sunday, when the liturgy invites us to explore topics of theology not often discussed in sermons, such as the Holy Spirit or the Trinity, we shouldn’t let those teaching moments pass.